Pay Attention! Louis DeMarco Murals Debut at The 606

Churchill Park, 1825 N. Damen

June 16, 2015 – Project Onward is proud to present Pay Attention, a public art project commissioned for The 606 by the Trust for Public Land. Located at Churchill Park in Chicago, Pay Attention features three hand-painted murals based on the work of Project Onward artist Louis DeMarco. DeMarco is an artist with autism, whose charts and text-based drawings are visual strategies meant to describe and cope with the anxieties, obsessions, and distractions that sometimes overwhelm him. The trio of panels (“Cloud Chart,” “Halo Chart,” and “Pay Attention”) reminds us all to look closely, think carefully, and do the right thing.

Pay Attention is presented in conjunction with ADA 25 Chicago. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects the rights of people with disabilities — on the street, in public places and at work. As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the ADA, now is the time to recognize that having a disability is a natural part of the human experience. ADA 25 Chicago will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 2015 and leverage this civil rights milestone to make the Chicago region the most inclusive in the nation.

A mural is born….

Project Onward artists Louis DeMarco, Fernando Ramirez, Bill Douglas, and Pedro Basantes painted the mural panels for The 606 in our studio in May, 2015, using Louis’ drawings as inspiration for the site-specific public art project.